Westmores to Receive Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

Legendary makeup men, The Westmores of Hollywood will receive their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2008. The official word came from Hollywood's honorary mayor, and walk of fame chairman, Johnny Grant. “Today I am happy to announce an array of celebrities who have earned this recognition for a combination of professional achievement and community involvement.”
     Pioneers of their industry, the Westmores helped create and define the role of makeup artists in motion pictures. Wigmaker George Westmore made history when he opened the first makeup department in 1917 at Selig Studios. George's oldest sons, Monte, Ern, Perc and Wally, went on to open their own makeup departments at Warner Brothers, RKO and Paramount. By the 1930s, nearly every motion picture studio had a Westmore heading up its makeup department. In 1935, the brothers teamed up to open the opulent salon called The House of Westmore on 6638 Sunset Strip. Bud Westmore ran the makeup department at Universal for 24 years where he created the Creature from the Black Lagoon. Youngest son Frank was a freelance makeup artist and worked with Cecil B. DeMille on the Ten Commandments and wrote a family biography appropriately titled, The Westmore's of Hollywood.
     The third generation Westmore brothers, Monty Jr., Marvin and Michael have all made their own significant mark in Hollywood. Monty Jr. was personal makeup artist to Paul Newman and Joan Crawford. Marvin created the fashion forward makeup for the epic film Blade Runner and Michael is the mastermind behind the alien creations on the Star Trek series and won an Oscar for his work on Mask.
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